Hero
by CSINYNut
Summary: When the NYPD loses a hero, how does it effect those around them? Rated M for a few swear words.


Okay, this has been bugging me for days now and it's finally complete and I can finally get back to writing another chapter of "Home". I don't want to give too much away at the start, so I will let you read and fill you in on what I was thinking at the end.

Disclaimer: I don't own what you recognize.

* * *

Don Flack stood at a crime scene on the upper east side of New York; waiting for his favorite team of CSI's to show up. After interviewing all the witnesses he could and still coming up with nothing, he decided to head back into the small bricked house and see what he could find in there. Finally he could hear footsteps behind him, indicating his team had arrived.

He turned around and saw his best friend, Danny Messer, come up the stairs followed by his best friend's wife, Lindsay Messer.

"Oh, so I get the wonder duo this fine morning," Don said as the pair set down their cases.

"Ha ha," Lindsay replied. "We're not that wonderful this morning."

"Uh oh, did someone wake up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?"

"Try the wrong side of the crib," Danny told his friend. "Little Lucy was up all night with a fever. We aren't sure if it's her teeth or the flu. So instead of day care, my ma's got her for the day. Maybe a nice day with Nona and Poppa will help her feel better. Now can we get onto our job so I can get home to my baby girl sometime this week?"

"Touchy touchy. Say hello to Mr. Duncan. 55-year-old male who lives alone. Neighbors hadn't seen him for a few days so they called the police to check on him."

"Does he not have any family?"

"I'm having someone look up next to kin now. He does live here alone and one neighbor told me that they usually see him outside every day. But like I said no one had seen him and they didn't want to check on him themselves. I don't see signs of foul play, but I will leave all that up to you." As he finished his sentence, Flack's cell phone began to ring. He pulled it out of his pocket and when he saw the number on the screen, he frowned. "Excuse me guys, I gotta take this."

Flack stepped out of the room into the main foyer. "Flack. What? Um…yeah. I'll be there in about half an hour. I promise. I'm leaving right now. Okay. Bye." Flack walked back into the room where Danny and Lindsay where processing. "Hey, guys. I have to leave now. Um, there's a uni outside, I'll have him come in. I'll probably have to hand this over."

"Everything okay?" Lindsay asked.

Flack shook his head, trying to keep his emotions at bay. "I gotta go." He walked out of the house, quickly told the uniform to get into the house to watch over the CSI's and jumped into his car. He paused for a second to collect himself, which was the last anyone saw of him.

Danny looked at Lindsay. "That can't be good. I'm gonna call Mac. Maybe he can find out what's going on." Lindsay nodded. Danny dialled the number of his boss and waited. "Hey Mac. It's Danny."

"What's up?" The head of the crime lab asked.

"Flack just left here like a bat out of hell. He got a phone call and didn't look too good."

"Someone still there with you guys?"

"Yeah, yeah. There's a uni. He said that he was going to have to hand the case over. Mac, something's not right."

"I'll make some phone calls; see what I can find out. Don't worry about it."

"Easier said than done, boss. Call me when you know something." Danny hung up the phone and looked at his wife. He imagined he had the same look of worry on his face that she did. "He'll be fine. I'm sure it's nothing."

"I hope so. I don't think he can take anymore. After Jess and Stella leaving, one more thing might just set him off again."

"Well, he has his friends. And I know after what happened after Jess died, he has realized that he has all his friends. Let's get this done and get back to the lab and maybe Mac will have something about Don for us."

* * *

Flack pulled into a parking spot as close to the emergency doors at Trinity General as he could. He was still having a hard time wrapping his sister's words around his head. He walked into the hospital and scanned the area for his sister, Sam. Spotting her in a far corner, he made his way over to her.

"Any news?" He asked.

Sam wiped her eyes and looked up at her brother. She shook her head. "Nothing yet. How could this happen? He's been so healthy. Gran has made him eat healthy for years, basically since Ma died."

Don sighed and wrapped his sister is his arms. "Sometimes shit happens. The healthiest person could still end up with cancer or anything. It was just a matter of time before his heart acted up. Look at how many times he came home with chest pain when we were kids. How many times did he back out of games with us because he wasn't feeling well? It's the stress of the job and now it's probably been the stress of live. With us as his kids, I'm just surprised that it took this long."

Sam laughed. "You aren't supposed to be making jokes right now. Our father is lying in there after a major heart attack, Donnie. What if he doesn't make it?"

"I'm not even thinking that far ahead right now. He is going to be fine. Look, you and I, we're stubborn. Where you do you we get that from? Our old man. He's so stubborn nothing will be able to keep him down for long. When he wakes up, he is going to be bitching for us to get him out of here because he's missed a few games on TV."

Sam took a deep breath. "Yeah, yeah. You're right. He's going to be fine"

After two hours of sitting in the waiting room, waiting for the doctor who was taking care of their father to come out, Don was getting agitated. He kept wondering what was taking so long. Sam had said he was being taken in for surgery and that she was told the surgery wasn't going to be this long. For any surgery to be this long it only meant bad news and he didn't think that he could handle any more bad news.

* * *

After a few hours of processing the crime scene, Danny and Lindsay finally arrived back at the Crime Lab. They dropped the evidence off and headed to Mac's office. Danny knocked on the door and walked in when Mac waved them in.

"Okay. Thanks. Let me know if you need someone there. Of course I would send him. Okay, bye," Mac hung up the phone and turned and looked at two of his best employees.

"Well, what's the verdict?" Danny asked.

Mac sighed. "Well, I was finally able to get Don himself on the phone. Turns out his father had a massive heart attack this morning. Don's sister Sam was with him, they had gone out grocery shopping. He's in surgery but they don't know the outcome yet. He's going to keep me updated as he gets information."

"Does he need anything?" Lindsay asked.

"Not right now. He did want me to apologize to the two of you for not letting you know sooner, but I told him we all understood."

Danny sat down. "Did he say what the odds were?"

Mac shook his head. "The doctor told Sam that they were going to do everything and that he should pull through, but I guess he's been in surgery for a few hours now and Don doesn't think it looks good. I told him if he should need anyone, Danny, you would be the first on the list to go down there. Now, that's settle, where are you two on the Duncan investigation."

Danny and Lindsay relayed all the information they had gathered from the crime scene and headed out to start processing everything. Danny stood in the DNA lab thinking about more than just the current case.

Don Flack Sr. was a legend within the NYPD. Everyone who walked through the halls of the police academy knew who he was. Hell, even Danny knew who he was before he became friends with Jr. Danny had known that, given his own background, Flack Sr. had no respect for him or even thought he deserved to be a part of the NYPD, but over the years, as he and Jr. became better friends and he spent more time with the elder Flack all of that seemed to have disappeared.

"Hey, you with me here?" Lindsay said as she waved her hand in front of her husband's face.

"Um, yeah, yeah. Just thinking."

"About Don's dad?"

Danny nodded. "The last few years he's finally given me a chance. He never wanted to before, but Don had been making sure that he knew I wasn't as bad of a guy as everyone put me out to be. He even came to the hospital after Lucy was born. And now, a lame heart attack is going to take him out?"

Lindsay walked over and put her arm around him. "We don't even know how bad it was. Maybe it wasn't that bad. He's going to pull through. Hell, we'll even stop by after we are done work before we go and pick up Lucy. Okay?" Danny agreed and they both got back to work, knowing that the quicker they got it done, the quicker they could leave.

* * *

Don stood looking out the window in the waiting room, hoping for some kind of miracle. A nurse had come by about 10 minutes before and said that the doctor was on his way to talk to them. He knew that this was going to be the moment of truth, the moment when he would need to be the strongest for his sister and everyone else in the family. Hearing Sam clear her throat made Don turn around and see that the doctor was there.

"Is he going to make it?" Sam whispered.

"Right now, we have him on life support." Sam gasped as the doctor explained. Don sat down beside her and grabbed her hand. "But that's only so that the heart can recover. We have repaired the damage as best we can. The rest is up to your father. If all goes well tonight, we may try to take him off the life support in the morning and see where that leads us."

"What will happen after he's taken off the life support?" Don asked.

"He can start to recover. It's going to be a very long road for your father. It's not going to be an easy one but if he sticks to what all the doctors are going to tell him then he should make a recovery."

"Is he going to be able to do the same things again? He loves being able to go for long walks." Sam asked.

"He will be able to go for walks, but probably not a very long one for a while. This is all going to depend on how things go tonight and tomorrow. I have seen patients who are not in great health bounce back from something like this. Your father is in excellent shape."

Don nodded. "Can we go and see him?"

"Of course, just follow me."

Don helped Sam up and together they followed the doctor towards their father's hospital room. "Just to warn you. There are going to be a lot of wires and tubes." Both Flack siblings nodded and the doctor slowly opened the door.

They weren't even fully in the room and Sam let out a small sob. Don hugged her and tried to look at his father. It didn't even look like him. This wasn't the man who took him and his sister to baseball games or even the man who was an NYPD legend. Don guided his sister towards the bed and made her sit down in the chair. He walked around to the other side of the bed and took a seat. He sat for a few moments before he got up. He went behind his sister and rubbed her shoulders.

"I'll be right back. I've got to go and make a few phone calls okay?" When Sam nodded he walked out of the room and headed outside. He pulled his cell out and started to dial.

"Taylor,"

"Hey Mac, its Don."

"How's everything?"

"Well, he's out of surgery. They say it's going to be a while before he will up and moving around but he's stable for now."

"Okay. That's what you've told your sister. Now, tell me the truth."

Don let out a little laugh. "You know me too well. It doesn't look good Mac. He doesn't look good. The doctor said they are going to take him off of the life support in the morning, they've got him on it tonight just to give his heart a chance to heal but I don't know. There is something telling me this is it. Does that make sense? I don't want to believe it; I can't believe it for my sister's sake. She's never had a great relationship with the man. Hell I haven't. He's never been a great father but he's always been there and now, I don't know."

"Well than you just have to wait until the morning to make sense. Wait and see what happens when they take him off the life support and then have that discussion with yourself. I think you are prepared for whatever will happen, but is Sam?"

"God no. She thinks that he is going to be okay. She's like a little girl again. I remember her being like this one other time. I think she's hoping she's going to get a second chance with him. She deserves that, we both do."

"Everyone deserves that second chance. But some people don't get them."

"Yeah I know. Listen, I'll let you go. I was going to call Danny but they should be home by now. Can you call him and let both of them know what is going on?"

"Of course. He is going to want to come down there."

"Yeah, I know. Tell him to wait until the morning. I'll call him and fill him in more."

"Okay. Take care and remember we are all here."

"Yeah I know. I won't make the same mistake twice."

Don and Mac said their goodbyes and Don headed back up to his father's hospital room. He honestly didn't know what to think at that point. Everything in his brain was telling him that his father wasn't going to come out of this but his heart was telling him his father was strong man and everything would be okay. By the time he made it back up the room, he looked in and saw Sam slowly falling asleep. He knew this was no place for either one of them to be staying overnight but he couldn't help but want to stay and watch over both of them. He walked back into the room, grabbing a blanket on the way in, draped it over his sister and sat back down in the chair. He closed his eyes, said a silent prayer, he sat back and tried to get some sleep.

* * *

Don wasn't sure what woke him up hours later; he slowly opened his eyes and started to look around. It was then that he realized a bunch of the machines attached to his father were going off.

"Dad, dad." He panicked. Don ran to the door, "I need some help in here." Nurses came running into the room and quickly pushed Don and Sam out of the room. He watched as the doctor went running in after. He wrapped his arms around Sam as she started to sob. Don watched as everyone rushed around his father's body, trying to revive him. He could hear the steady beep of the monitor telling him everything he had feared. Soon after, the beep became more erratic and evened out. He let out the breath he didn't even know he was holding and watched as the doctor came towards them.

"What happened?" Don asked.

"I'm not going to know for sure. I do believe it was a stroke. It's very uncommon but does happen. We are going to take him for a MRI and see what there is."

"What could have caused it?"

"Sometimes after a heart attack like the one your father had can release a blood clot that can cause a stroke. Like I said, I won't know the extent of anything until we get the MRI done." The doctor turned around and saw the nurses pushing out the bed. "I promise as soon as I know something I will let you know." The doctor quickly walked away with the nurses. Don closed his eyes.

"What are we going to do?" Sam whispered.

"I don't know. Let's just wait and see what comes back from the MRI and we will take it from there." He felt Sam nod and tried to believe the words that he was saying.

After what felt like hours, the doctor finally followed his father back into his room. Don and Sam waited for the doctor to come back out and give them the news. When he finally came out and looked at the siblings.

"Well?" Sam asked.

"I'm afraid my original diagnosis was correct. Your father suffered from a major stroke through the night."

"Is there anything you can do for him?"

The doctor shook his head. "Unfortunately not. The only thing we can do now is to keep him comfortable."

"Why not? There has to be something you can do. You're a doctor. Get in there a do something."

"I'm sorry. The stroke left your father with little to no brain function. I'm sorry, I wish there was something we could do to help your father. But now it's up to you."

"What do you mean, up to us?" Don asked fearing the inevitable.

"There is no clear way of saying it. We are making him as comfortable as possible, but I'm going to tell you, there is nothing anyone can do to help him get better."

"You're talking about taking him off of life support."

The doctor nodded. "I know it's a hard decision to make. But remember, he isn't suffering anymore." The doctor walked away leaving the siblings in heartache.

Don knew there was no way he was going to be able to pull the plug on his father. He looked down at Sam. He knew she'd never be able to make the decision. The only other person that would be able to make the decision would have to be his grandmother. He sent Sam back into the room and left to go and make the worst phone call ever.

* * *

Danny bolted out of bed from a deep sleep. He didn't know what did it; he looked at the time and saw that it was only 3:30am. He quietly got out of bed and went to check on his daughter. Seeing that she was okay, he headed to the kitchen. He grabbed a glass and filled it with water. He tried to figure out what would have woken him up. The apartment was quiet and his cell phone hadn't gone off. He decided to head back to bed. Just as he was about to go back into his bedroom, he hear his cell phone start to beep. He headed back to the kitchen and picked it up. There was one simple message that he never wanted to see. 'He's gone'. He quickly went back to his room, got changed, left Lindsay a note and headed to the hospital.

Danny could remember the first time he heard those words come out of his best friend's mouth. It was the one time he didn't know what to do. He felt as though he was partly responsible for his friend following down a deep hole, he vowed to himself that this time he wasn't going to let that happen. When he got to the hospital, he asked the charge nurse where to go. He was directed to the third floor. Danny was hoping he wasn't too late. He was hoping that maybe there was still a chance for him to thank the one man who, other than Mac, had taken him under his wing. He got out of the elevator and headed straight. As he got closer he could see Sam sitting on the floor outside the room with her head in her hands. He slid down beside her and hugged her. She immediately put her head on Danny's shoulder and started to cry harder. He tried to console her as best he could. Danny heard the hospital room door open and looked up. He saw a doctor come out with Don headed behind him. He whispered to Sam that he was getting up and after feeling a slight nod from her, got up off the floor. He watched as Don thanked the doctor and walked towards him.

"You didn't have to come down."

"Yes, I did. I was up anyway. What do you need?"

"Did Lucy have you up? Um, right now. Nothing. Actually, just a friend. Someone to talk to. My sister's a wreck."

"No she didn't. She was fast asleep. Well, your friend is here. You tell me what you need to talk about and we will talk about it. What's happening?"

Don took a deep breath. "He had a stroke about two hours ago. They ran an MRI and there is nothing they can do. My gran is in with him now. She's making the decision I didn't want to have to make." Danny guided Don to a seat. "I don't know Danny. How do I say goodbye? How do I walk in there and tell my father, who I have looked up to my whole live, goodbye?"

"You take it one step at a time. You take your sister and you both go in there together and say your piece. I know Sam and your father haven't always been on the same page but you and I both know that she needs to do this as much as you. And then when everything is said and done, you and Sam are going to come back to my place, you're going to get something to eat and then you are both going to get some sleep."

"Danny, I can't ask you to do all that."

"You aren't asking me to do anything. I'm telling you what is going to happen. Do you want me to come in there with you or do you want to go in just the two of you?"

"I think Sam and I can handle it. Thanks Danny. I'm glad your here." Don walked over, helped his sister up off the ground and walked into the hospital room to say goodbye to his father one last time.

Danny took his glasses off and ran a hand over his face. He knew that he was in for the long haul and just hoped that he was prepared to help out. Danny figured the first thing he should do is to let the news out. He knew the best way to do that would be to call Mac.

Danny let the phone ring knowing it was late, or early, and Mac would be sleeping. He was fully ready to leave a message when his boss picked up.

"Taylor,"

"Hey Mac. Didn't mean to wake you. I just wanted to let you know about Don's father,"

"It's okay. How is he?"

"Not good. He had a stroke sometime through the night and there is nothing they can do. Don and his sister are in with him now."

"Are you at the hospital?"

"Yeah. He sent me a text about 45 minutes ago so I decided just to come down. Listen, I know he's not going to be up to making all the phone calls to the brass and everything. I've told him that I am going to help out where I can. Would you be able to get me the numbers?"

"Don't worry about it. First light in the morning, when I get into the office, I will make all the phone calls. Tell Don just to focus on his family. I'm sure there will be funeral arrangements already made through the brass."

Danny nodded. "Okay. Sounds good. After everything is done here, I am going to take them both back to my place and let them rest up and see what else needs to be done after that."

"Good. Don't worry about your shift today, I'll find someone to cover it. You're a good friend Danny. He's going to need you."

"I know. I'm not going to let him fall down a hole this time." They said their goodbyes and Danny hung up.

A few minutes later, Danny watched the doctor go into the room and after two minutes he could hear Sam start to cry harder. He bowed his head a said a silent prayer for both the fallen father and his children so that they may have to strength to continue.

* * *

Danny walked into his apartment with the Flack siblings behind him around 6am. He knew Lindsay would be getting up for work soon and would want to know what was going on. He knew Don would make himself feel at home because of the amount of times he had been there before. Danny headed to the bedroom and as he opened up the door he heard Lindsay coming out of the bathroom. They both sat down on the bed and Danny explained what was going on. He told her that they were going to spend the day the apartment and since Danny wasn't going into work, Lucy could stay home too. He thought maybe it would be good for Don to spend some time with his honorary niece. Lindsay gave her husband a hug and headed out to the living room, only to see both Don and Sam curled up on the couch, fast asleep. Danny saw the sight on his couch and decided that maybe getting a few hours of sleep himself wouldn't be such a bad idea.

* * *

A few days later, after all the arrangements, by the heads of the NYPD no less, had been made, Don was standing in his bedroom staring at himself in the mirror. He couldn't believe this day had come. He thought he would be years older than he actually was before he buried his father. Just thinking about it brought tears to his eyes. He could hear his sister in the next room sniffling every few minutes and knew she was feeling the same way. He wished he could walk into that room and make everything okay for his sister but at this point he knew there was nothing he could say that would make her feel better.

He realized, as he looked at the suit he threw on his bed that morning that the one way he could honor his father would be to hear the one thing that made him to most proud of his son. Don walked over his closet and dug straight to the back. He pulled out his dress blues and immediately felt a little better. Although, his father did say he didn't want anyone from the NYPD in their blues, he felt like this was the one thing he had to do. He silently got dressed and looked at himself in the mirror again. With a nod if his head, he headed out of the bedroom.

As he was walking out, he heard a soft knock on his door. When Don looked through the peephole and smiled to himself.

"What are you doing here?" he said as he opened the door to his best friend.

"Figured you could use a friend this morning," Danny replied as he looked at his friend. "I thought no blues allowed."

"Yeah well, didn't feel right without them." He went to close the door when he heard a faint yell.

"Hey, don't close that," Lindsay yelled as she got to the door. "Sorry, had to find a spot to park."

"It's okay. Where's the little one?"

"My ma picked her up this morning. Figured it would be better if she didn't come with us." Danny replied.

Don nodded. He walked over to the kitchen and grabbed a couple of bottles of water. He heard the spare bedroom door open and saw his sister slowly come out. He smiled to her as she made her way into the room. He noticed she wasn't wearing any of the usual makeup and thought about how young she looked without it. It reminded him of when Sam was just a little girl trying to impress their father. He felt the tears spring up and turned away from everyone.

Danny and Lindsay noticed the sudden emotional shift the room took when Sam came out. Lindsay walked over and put her arm around Sam and gave her a small hug.

"You look beautiful."

"Thanks," Sam whispered. "It was my dad's favorite dress. I bought it when I was in high school. I'm surprised it still fits."

"Well, you haven't grown much since then," Don said.

"Laugh it up giant," Sam hadn't noticed her brother's attire until she turned around and when she saw him she let out a little gasp. "Wow,"

"Too much?"

Sam shook her head. "You look just like he did. I remember looking at his graduation pictures from the academy. Oh Donnie." Don quickly made his way over to his sister and took her in his arms. "I can't do this. I can't say goodbye."

"Yes you can. We both can. We can do it together."

Sam nodded. "Whose car are we taking?"

Lindsay stepped forward. "You don't have to worry about it. You both are coming with Danny and I. And there will be no arguments. Today is tough enough on the two of you so just leave this one last bit to us."

"I can't ask you guys to do that." Don said.

"You aren't asking. We are offering, or well telling. Don't worry about it. Are you both ready to go?"

Don looked at his sister and nodded. Sam went and grabbed her purse, watched as Don held out his hand and together the siblings headed out the door.

When the foursome arrived at the church, Don was overwhelmed by the amount of people whom had shown up. He figured it would be a small handful that his father had worked with but not this many people. It seemed that there were patrol officers from numerous precincts that had arrived to show their respects.

Don took a deep breath and headed into the church. As soon as he could walk in, he could see that it was standing room only. He held Sam's hand tighter as they made their way to the front, to their seats. Every once in a while a certain cop would give a nod as to give their condolence. If it wasn't for his sister and the fact his friends were behind him as pillars, Don was sure he would try to make his way back outside. When he got to the front row, where he grandmother was sitting and where he and sister would be sitting, he saw his coworkers sitting in the row behind them. He gave Mac a small smile and motioned for his sister to sit down. Just as he was about to sit down, out of the corner of his eye he saw a head of curly hair. He turned around and saw of his best friends, Stella Bonasera, sitting beside Mac. She gave him her trademark smile and his heart felt a little better.

The funeral started like every other. The usual prayers, the usual speeches. Don knew that his father didn't really want anyone from the brass to make a speech, just his son. He was anticipating his name getting called but was shocked when it wasn't the first one to be called.

"To honor Donald's wishes, his son will be coming up to speak momentarily. However, at the last-minute, I was approached by someone else who wishes to speak before," the priest said.

Don turned around and looked to see who was coming up to make a speech. He felt a hand squeeze his shoulder. He looked up and saw Mac heading up to the pulpit.

"Last night, as I was preparing my staff for today's events, I was asked by one of them if I was going to say anything," Mac started. "At first, I wasn't going to because I know the request was no speeches by anyone other than Don Jr. But as I was sitting at home last night, I realized that there were a few things that I would have liked to say. I hope this is okay with you two, Sam and Don," Mac watched as Don nodded his head.

"About ten years ago, I walked onto a crime scene, somewhere in New York City, and standing there was this young man who looked like he was new to everything, when in fact he was just new to homicide. After getting all the information about the victim, this detective looks at me and says 'I'm Don Flack Jr. by the way. Yes my father is Don Sr. but I made my own way here.' I gave myself a laugh because at this time, everyone knew who Don Sr. was. I had heard about Jr. making his way up the ranks pretty quickly and I knew that most people were saying that he was riding on his father's coattails. I can tell you to this day that Don Flack Jr. will surpass his father and be a legend in his own making.

"I had the pleasure of meeting Don Sr. about 20 years ago when he was still a detective in Homicide. He was intimidating at first but once I got to know him, I realized that it was just how he was at work. I couldn't tell you how many times he came to a crime scene and would start bragging about his children. He would tell me about when Don scored his first goal in hockey in high school and how Sam got her very first A on an English assignment. I know it's hard for the two of you to believe, but he did love you. He may have been tough, but that's only because he wanted what was best for the two of you.

"He was a good man, a good cop and a great friend. We weren't the type of friends that went out for beers after work but we did our own share of drinking. In closing, everyone should try to remember what kind of person Don Sr. was. He cared for this city, he was a great cop, but most of all he was a father and a human being. Sometimes this job can become a bigger part of us than our families are and that's only because of the pressures everyone else puts on us. Don's two children are his legacy, not this job or what he accomplished." Mac stepped down from the pulpit and headed back to his seat. When he got to the front row, Don got up and went to shake his hand. Mac took the hand but pulled him into a hug. He smiled down at Sam but was surprised when she also got up and gave him a hug. He held his emotions back when he heard her whisper a thanks in his ear.

Don stayed standing as he watched Mac return to his seat. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Slowly he made his way up the steps. He stopped at his father's casket and looked down. He put his hand in the casket and closed his eyes.

"Is breá lion tú níos mó ná mar is féidir a rá. Inis mam Hi dom," he whispered. He made his way up to the pulpit.

"I don't even know where to start. I've never been good at public speaking especially after following someone like Mac Taylor," he heard a few giggles from his friends. "Last week, probably around this time, I was standing at a crime scene when my sister called me. And now, here I stand trying to figure out some good things to say about my father. I'm not saying that he was a bad father, he wasn't. He had his moments though. But those were normally after a rough week of shifts that seemed to blend into one another and normally when Sam and I were being little shits. It wasn't until my ma died that I saw a different side to my father. He became the type of person that I wanted to be when I grew up. That was when I made my decision to become a cop. But I also think that's when things changed for my sister. It wasn't her fault nor was it my father's fault. They just didn't have a solid ground to meet on. I became, what Sam would call, dad's golden boy. I could do no wrong in his eyes and trust me I tried everything. I stole his car, I came in late, anything I could think of but it came down to I was just acting out. I didn't want any special treatment from him or when I started with the NYPD, hence the story Mac told. I feel bad hoping no one is thinking that I felt like my father was a bad man. He wasn't. He was the best. He was there for me when I needed him. I remember waking up in the hospital after being caught in a bomb blast. He made sure I was okay and then basically made me move in with him during my recovery. I saw the best in my dad during that time. He was patient with me even when I was screaming at him. He took me back and forth to rehab, made sure I was taking my pills at the right time. He was like a regular dad, taking care of a sick child.

"I can remember one time in high school; it was my first hockey game, probably around grade 10. I've played hockey when I was younger and to me those games weren't important, but high school games, they were important. My dad told me he would make sure he was there. First period came and went, he still wasn't there. Second period, I remember skating towards the net and just hearing my name being yelled, I knew my father's voice anywhere, and I just shot the puck. It went in and that was my first goal. I turned around, while my teammates were trying to congratulate me, I skated over to the boards and there was my father standing there cheering. Standing up here right now, I know that every moment of my life and my sister's life, my father was on the sidelines constantly cheering for us, no matter what we were doing, stupid or not. My father was a great man and a great cop. But the one thing that he was the best at, being our father." Don stepped down and went back to his seat.

The rest of the funeral was a blur for both Don and Sam. The next thing he remembered was walking outside the church getting ready to head to the burial site. A few people stopped him and gave them their condolences. On his way down the grass, with his sister on his left, he felt someone come up on his right and grab his other hand. He looked over and saw Stella walking beside him. She offered him a smile and they kept walking.

When they got to the burial site, Don looked around. He looked at Stella. "Where's Danny? I thought he was coming down."

"I think Lindsay said he was going to call and check on Lucy," she replied. "But now that you mention it, all the guys are missing." Stella spotted Lindsay and waved her over. "Where the heck did all the guys go?"

Lindsay shrugged. "I know Danny went to call his mom but the other ones I have no idea."

The priest walked up the Don and asked if they were ready. Don nodded and watched as the few people who followed lined up as well as the seven patrol officers who were going to do the twenty-one gun salute. Don still wasn't ready for all of this to happen. As the priest said his last prayers, Don saw movement over his left shoulder. He looked over and his breath caught in his chest. He turned and saw Danny, Mac, Sheldon Hawkes and oddly Adam Ross walking towards the grave site dressed in the NYPD issued dress uniform. Tears started to fall from Don's eyes. He returned his gaze to the priest just as he was passing everything along to the patrol officers. He watched as the four men lined themselves up along the men with the guns and knew what they were about to do. He let go of Sam's and Stella's hand and walked over to join them. As the officers armed themselves, the five men raised their arms in salute.

Don could feel his whole body shake as the last gunshot left the barrels of the guns. That was all it took for the emotions to leave his body. He felt himself fall back as he lost control. Part of him felt embarrassed for losing it but it was necessary. He felt arms wrap around him and start whispering in his ear. He could smell his sister's perfume and knew she was there. After a few moments, he was able to calm himself. He looked around and saw everyone, other than his friends, had left. Don slowly started to get up, with the help from Danny and Sam.

"I'm sorry," he said,

"You have nothing to be sorry for. This has been one hell of a week for you," Danny replied. "Do you wanna head home?"

Don shook his head. "No, we had plans. I really need a drink. But actually stopping off at home does sound good. I wanna get out of this thing."

The two friends started to walk towards the car. They caught up to everyone else, who were standing at the vehicles.

"Look guys, I appreciate the get-ups. Whose idea was it?"

"Mine," Danny said. "I figured the one thing that your father deserved was this kind of send-off."

"Thanks. He did. Now, what I have to know," Don turned to Adam. "How the heck did you get a uniform?"

Everyone around them laughed.

"Well, it's um, borrowed. I didn't know your father but I wanted to make sure I honored him."

Don bowed his head. "Thanks Adam. Anyways, we still going to Jimmy's?" Everyone nodded. Don turned to Sam. "Are you going to come with us?"

She shook her head. "Nah, you guys go ahead. I'll just hang out at your place, if that's okay?"

"You don't have to drink. You need to eat. Just come and sit, you don't have to talk."

Sam smiled up at her brother. She pulled him aside by his elbow. "Hey. I'm okay. I know I wouldn't have to drink but right now, that thought is there. I just want to go, get into my pj's and go to bed. Maybe have some popcorn and curl up with one of your stupid movies. We are both going to deal with this differently. I'm going to be okay."

"Are you sure?" Sam nodded. "Alright. Come back with me and I'll help you get settled."

"Alright. You'll get your way this time. Look you have to go back to work soon and I have to find a job. I'll be out of your hair in a few days."

"You don't need to rush that. I told you I would help you find a job. I know a few people in the area you want to be in. Let me make a few things up to you."

Sam sighed. She knew this was coming. "You have nothing to make up for. In fact, I should be making things up to you. I have been horrible to you the last couple of years. I asked you to do things that a sister should never have to. You have been amazing, helping me when I was at my lowest. I just wish I could have made it up to Dad. I wish I could tell him one more time how much I loved him."

Don hugged his sister. "He knew sweetie he knew."

The siblings walked back over to the car. It would take a while, but eventually the sting on losing their father would lessen. They would never forget the man who had shaped both of them into the adults they were.

* * *

So I was watching 501 and noticed that Sam asked Don not to tell their father what had happened. So it got me thinking, we know in Season 5 that Flack Sr. is alive but in episode 905 "Misconceptions" he has died somewhere in between. Now I watch it as religiously as I can and I don't remember them ever dealing with him dying. So this was my way of how it should have been dealt with.

Now, by no means, am I a medical professional, so anything medical was basically made up for artistic purposes.

I also found in season 5 how hot it was when Flack spoke Gaelic, so I decided to throw that in here. I did the translation from google and what he was saying was, "I love you more that words can say. Tell mom hi for me."

So that's it. Thanks for reading!


End file.
